Deterring renewed attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia on US warships and growing threats on international commercial shipping in the Red Sea will take “significant” diplomatic and military efforts, despite better international preparedness, experts have told Al Arabiya English.
Houthi forces claimed on Wednesday to have carried out a fourth attack in 72 hours on an American fleet in the Red Sea – one of the world’s busiest shipping routes – specifically targeting the USS Harry S. Truman carrier group.
It comes after pledging last week to resume attacks on Red Sea shipping in support Palestinians in Gaza who have been under heavy Israeli bombardment. This series of attacks represents a marked intensification in their campaign, which began in November 2024.
In response, the US military said its pressure campaign against the Iran-backed armed group was ongoing.
Farea al-Muslimi, a research fellow for the Middle East and North Africa Program at Chatham House, told Al Arabiya English that it is “not that serious, but also serious.”
“It is not that serious because so far they (the US) have been able to stop all the rockets or drones before they hit their targets, and the Houthi technology is not yet very advanced,” he said.
“But only if one in a hundred doesn’t miss, that will still do a lot of damage. Then it’s very expensive. The Houthis will spend $2,000 on a rocket – but the damage caused – that can be about $100,000, so of course it’s quite consuming and bleeding for the US.”